Rachel Reeves owes Britain’s supermarkets an apology
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Britain as outlier / Islamism, the Muslim Brotherhood and the limits of Labour’s resolve
Royal family / It was inevitable that Prince George would go to Eton
Tensions / Why did a Russian warship fire at a British yacht in the Channel?
Raising the bar / Norman Balon was much more than ‘London’s rudest landlord’
Fever pitch / Might England just do it in the World Cup?
Motherhood / Beware the ‘matrescence’ con
Yawn / Why do I get stuck with bores at parties?
Highway to hell / The safety features in my car are downright dangerous
Good sport / A toff’s guide to Ascot
Raising the bar / Norman Balon was much more than ‘London’s rudest landlord’
Fever pitch / Might England just do it in the World Cup?
Motherhood / Beware the ‘matrescence’ con
Yawn / Why do I get stuck with bores at parties?
From Spectator Life
Highway to hell / The safety features in my car are downright dangerous
From Spectator Life
Good sport / A toff’s guide to Ascot
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All the latest analysis of the day's news
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Cutting Army Reserve training would be a disaster
Israel must bear the brunt of fighting Iran alone
Starmer is leaving Britain unprepared for future conflicts
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Spectator Life
An intelligent mix of culture, food, style and property, plus where to go and what to see.
Why do I get stuck with bores at parties?
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Tips for the first three days of Royal Ascot
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David Hockney was a style icon
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Meet my snooty AI sommelier
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A toff’s guide to Ascot
From Spectator LifeWhen I announced to my American neighbour that I was going to Ascot for the first time in 20 years, she grabbed me by the arm as if I had just announced that I was running off with the gardener. Apparently Ascot and the Royal Enclosure have changed beyond recognition since the latest refurb and there is much to learn. ‘Which day are you going?’ she asked wildly, as I muttered something about Ladies Day. She turned around in shock, hand over mouth. If she were Hyacinth Bucket from Keeping Up Appearances, I was her nervous friend Elizabeth who spills her tea all over her saucer, shaking like a leaf. ‘We don’t have much time,’ she cried in no particular direction. When she learned about my proposed outfit, she went pale.
The safety features in my car are downright dangerous
From Spectator Life
Magazine
This week's magazine
Forever war
Is an exhausted peace looming?
Forever war: will Zelensky and Putin be brought to an exhausted peace?
Volodymyr Zelensky stood proudly on the steps of 10 Downing Street this week, flanked by Sir Keir Starmer and the leaders of France and Germany, ready to discuss Europe’s latest package of support for Ukraine’s ongoing war effort. Though the conflict has, as of this week, lasted longer that the first world war, Zelensky is in some ways in the most heroic period of his presidency. Ukraine not only continues to stand firm against intense Russian assaults but also seems to be regaining a strategic advantage with its long-range drone strikes. Europe has stepped up to replace US funding and diplomacy and the fall of Hungary’s Viktor Orban has unlocked a €90 billion loan package. Yet it is also the most sordid period of Zelensky’s presidency.
Forever war: will Zelensky and Putin be brought to an exhausted peace?
Volodymyr Zelensky stood proudly on the steps of 10 Downing Street this week, flanked by Sir Keir Starmer and the leaders of France and Germany, ready to discuss Europe’s latest package of support for Ukraine’s ongoing war effort. Though the conflict has, as of this week, lasted longer that the first world war, Zelensky is in some ways in the most heroic period of his presidency. Ukraine not only continues to stand firm against intense Russian assaults but also seems to be regaining a strategic advantage with its long-range drone strikes. Europe has stepped up to replace US funding and diplomacy and the fall of Hungary’s Viktor Orban has unlocked a €90 billion loan package. Yet it is also the most sordid period of Zelensky’s presidency.
Culture
The good, the bad and the ugly in books, exhibitions, cinema, TV, dance, music, podcasts and theatre.
‘I think I’ve found a real paradise’: David Hockney interviewed
From the magazineDavid Hockney has died, aged 88. During lockdown in 2020, Martin Gayford, the author of ‘Conversations With Hockney’, spoke to him for the magazine. Spring has not been cancelled. Neither have the arts ceased to function. David Hockney’s marvellous exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery may be sadly shut, but the artist himself is firing on all cylinders. ‘I was just drawing on this thing I’m talking to you on,’ he announced when I spoke to him via FaceTime the other day. He was sitting in the sunshine outside his half-timbered farmhouse in Normandy. ‘We’re very busy here,’ Hockney explained, ‘because all the blossom is just coming out, and there’s a lot more to come. The big cherry tree looks glorious right now.
Spielberg fumbles his final sci-fi
From the magazineMichelle Terry is ferocious in Brecht’s simplistic tutorial
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The liberating delights of Aldous Harding
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Another thriller, another teenage incel
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Delightful Rossini at Glyndebourne
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This Lucian Freud belongs on the compost
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Cartoons
‘‘You have the right to remain silent.’’
Cartoon
‘‘Oh no! There’s no longer one born every minute.’’
Cartoon
‘‘Do you ever get the feeling we’ve been forgotten about?’’
Cartoon
